


How Did We End Up In This?

by Whitefenix



Category: Captain America - All Media Types, Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Cute Kids, F/M, spies with kids
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-01-10
Updated: 2018-01-10
Packaged: 2019-03-02 23:11:18
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,781
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13328406
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Whitefenix/pseuds/Whitefenix
Summary: "Nat! Bucky! Please, help. Take care of my children. It’s a weekend. I’ll do whatever you want." clint begged





	How Did We End Up In This?

**Author's Note:**

  * For [panicsdownpour](https://archiveofourown.org/users/panicsdownpour/gifts).



_Nat! Bucky! Please, help. Take care of my children. It’s a weekend. I’ll do whatever you want.” Clint begged._

_“Whatever I want?” Natasha said smirking_

_“Do I get to ask whatever I want too?” Bucky said,_

_“Yes. But please: Take. Care. Of. My. Children.”_

_“Ask Steve. He’s good at this stuff” Natasha said._

_“He’ll be out on a mission. So will be everyone else. Except you two.”_

_“fine.” She said,_

_“I owe you one Nat.” Clint answered._

_“No, you don’t. I love your children. You and Laura deserve some time alone.”_

 

_\---_

“Remind me again, how did we end up in this?”

Bucky whispered, he didn’t want to wake up Cooper, not again. They’d already moved Lila to her bed and had done so successfully. Nathaniel had been sleeping since early already. But, Cooper? He was the definition of ADHD, which made looking after him a pain in the ass.

Bucky and Natasha had spent all afternoon following him around the Wakandan royal gardens, trying to keep him away from the sacred areas. Making sure he didn’t hurt himself or interrupt any of the workers there. It wasn’t so bad after all. Cooper was a nice, educated kid. Natasha could see so much of Clint in him, the excitement of finding something new went he explored the garden, the adrenaline junkie when he climbed the trees to the very top, against every order to come back down.  When Cooper was calm though, he was just like his mother.  Quiet, reflexive, and ingenious.

Now finally, after a long day of running around, Cooper was asleep.

“Nat, focus.” Bucky said with the little boy asleep in his arms. Natasha shook her head,

“sorry what?” she asked,

“The bed. Open the bed.” He said, and she snapped out of it and opened it, so he could finally put the kid into his bed and they could get a well-deserved rest from all the craziness that it was taking care of not one, not two, but three children simultaneously.

Bucky finished accommodating the sheets and pillows and they left the room, leaving the door almost closed, but not quite. Clint said to do so, in case he waked up in the middle of a night. Cooper was the only one of the to vividly remember the day that 17 armed soldiers covered from head to toe in black protection gear and carrying semi automatics stormed his house looking for his father, and it had affected him more than Clint would have wanted to.

 

\---

 

“Well, we survived” she said collapsing in the living room couch, “And your kid skills are really amazing. He just fell asleep as soon as he sat in your lap. I don’t think that’s ever happened to me.”

Bucky smiled, and crashed beside Natasha in the same sofa,

“I had a little sister, used to take care of her too.” Bucky said.

There’s a long silence, its even more present the fact that there’s no sound when they’ve gotten used to kids running around. Natasha sighs from relief. Then she laughs a little,

“Can you believe that that lady thought they were our kids?” she says,

“It was super awkward once she realized they weren’t” he said, with a light smile in his lips.

“Nah I think she was okay. Plus she must have realized they don’t look anything like us, maybe she was just asking to see if  they really were our children. You like kids?” Natasha asked, “cause’ they sure like you”

“yeah, I would say so.  It is weird though. Taking care of them. It makes me think what would it be like to have some of my own.  I wouldn’t have any now, not even if I got married. Obviously.”

“why not?” Nat asked,

“I just feel like, how do you explain-like- all of this. Kids ask questions, and they figure things out, it be weird. Also I would need to find someone to um….you know, have sex with.  Be with. A girlfriend.”

“it’s understandable why you don’t want to have kids.” Natasha ended.

“would you have kids?” he asked her in return,

“nah….” she said dismissingly.

“why not?” he asked, a moment later,

“too dangerous in our line of work”

“You mean avengers?” Bucky asked,

“No, I mean espionage. That’s what I do, what I was trained to do. The avengers- I don’t know what it was, it was good while it lasted, but it’s not my thing.”

“I’ve seen you work with them, and it looks like your just fine.”

“It’s not my thing because…I’m just better behind the scenes. Yeah sure, I can work in a team, I can adapt. But after all I’ve always worked better alone, you know that. You read my file. There’s plenty of that in there.”

“You’re still young though, you could retire. I’ve known some people who have retired.” Bucky said,

“Yeah, and how long do they last?” Natasha asked, ironically.

Bucky didn’t answer, he knew they didn’t last very long. Though he had ignored that part in hopes to give Natasha some positive comfort on the matter.

“People like us don’t usually retire, when they do they get shot a couple of months later. So I figured I’ll just keep living life the way I’m living it.” Natasha paused. “I’m sorry for all the depressing shit I just said. Let’s change topic.  I love Clint’s kids, and they like me, and they’re safe and loved. I have enough with them. Im the cool aunt.” She bragged.

“Change of topic then. Uhhh, we could run the simulations we need for the next mission if you want to…” Bucky suggested.

“It’s almost midnight, we’ve been chasing kids all day, -which by the way sometimes is harder than tracking a mafia boss- and you want to work?” She laughed at him. “Bucky you’re crazy”

“Maybe I am.” He said, his eyes closing involuntarily, I think I’m going to bed. Hope the kids don’t come jumping on my bed too early like today.  At what hour did Laura say they would be back?”

“Tomorrow morning, she didn’t said an exact time though,”  
“I think I’m going to bed then.” Bucky said, “Sleep well Natasha.”

“See you tomorrow Bucky.”

(an. Yes, I did just make her call him Bucky.)

\---

The peace didn’t last much. The clock was barely past seven when she heard footsteps running in the hallway. Then silence, then a presence, and an eye spying from the crook made by the door being almost closed but no quite.

 A Little blue eye. Like Clint’s, but not Clint’s.

“Do you need something Lila?” Natasha asked.

“I just wanted to see if you were awake”

“I am awake, and hungry. Should we go downstairs and make some breakfast?”

“Yes!” Lila said, she went running back to her room. “COOPER, AUNTIE NAT IS COOKING BREAKFAST! WAKE UP!”

“Shhh, people are still sleeping Lila, put shoes on before you go to the kitchen” she whispered towards the hall way, putting on some lazy pants and a hoodie.

She waited in Lila’s doorframe as the girl looked for her slippers in the closet. Last night, Cooper accidentally knocked a glass at dinnertime and it fell to the floor, breaking into tiny pieces.  She didn’t want her to step on glass.

“What’s going on?” a tired voice said from behind the opposing door, and a sleepy Cooper walked in,

“Good morning Coop. We’re cooking breakfast in a couple of minutes. My special breakfast.” Natasha said and winked at him.

Rapidly Lila turned around and Natasha could see how her eyes lighted up.

“We’re making pancakes?” Lila asked while putting her cat shaped plush slippers.

“Yes. We are.  But first” she looked at Laura, “shoes” she said, then turned to the boy, “Cooper, put something warmer, its cold downstairs. I’ll be waiting in the kitchen.”

 

“Okay kids, if you want some pancakes then we need eggs, flour, milk…” Natasha began listing. In a second, Lila and Cooper were running around the kitchen looking for the ingredients.

“It looks like we have everything.”

Natasha began cooking while the kids enthusiastically helped: cracking eggs, pouring milk, mixing.

“Coop, get some oil or butter for the pan”

The boy ran to do what he was asked, and bumped into a big figure. Bucky.

“Good morning James!” Cooper said,

“You can call me Bucky too Cooper, everyone does.” Bucky answered.

“But that’s not your name is it?”

“No, it isn’t.” they boy was already out of the conversation, distracted by the sound of the burners being turned on, Natasha and Bucky made eye contact and he rolled his eyes to her dismissing the nickname/name topic. “I checked on cooper, he is still sleeping” he said to her.

“Cooper, I need the oil- butter, whatever. Get it please.” Natasha asked as she started the kitchen fire and began warming the pan.

“Pancakes! I love them” Bucky exclaimed once he realized what they were cooking,

 “Bucky could you tie Lila’s hair up, so it doesn’t fall into the pancake mix please?”

While Bucky took Lila’s hair into his hands, Cooper did what Natasha asked and soon the sound of frying pancakes filled the kitchen. The kids wanted to have breakfast in the garden, so Natasha told them to set the table. They went off, and she then turned to Bucky.

“So why nobody calls you James anyway?” Natasha asked him while she waited for the pancake in the pan to fully cook.

“I don’t hear people calling you Natalia, even though that’s what your file says and what your name is.” He said,

“Yeah, they don’t call me that because that’s not how I presented myself when we met, plus that hasn’t been my name for a long time.” She said,

“Well, they don’t even call you Natasha. Most just say Nat, I don’t know why people call me Bucky, maybe It’s because, its shorter, easier, more tender, I feel like if you ask a psychologist he can give you a thousand more reasons. And Nobody called me James back then, so why should they now? It’s just It’s a nickname.”

“I like James.” Natasha said, “Can I call you James?” she asked,

“If you want to.”

\---

A couple of minutes later they sat down at the breakfast table, Bucky and the kids devouring the pancakes at an alarming rate.

“Well, what’s the verdict?” Natasha asked,

“They are really good” Bucky said, bringing his mug to his lips.

“They’re great Natasha” Lila said elbowing his brother on the ribs, so he would say something too.

“Thanks auntie” the boy said with his mouth full.

“When’s dad coming home?” Lila asked,

“This afternoon.”  

 

 

**Author's Note:**

> Yes, I did make nat call him bucky all through the fic. (I cringed several times while writing it)  
> I apologize. But if you look on the bright side, this fic cements the first time Natasha calls Bucky James, (and what i would like to interpret as the beginning of their modern relationship!


End file.
